CN107337195B - A carbon nanotube pulling device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a kind of carbon nanotube pulling device, for obtaining carbon nano tube structure from carbon nano pipe array.The carbon nanotube pulling device includes: an elastic rod and a controller.The elastic rod is rod-like structure, has one first connecting pin and connect opposite second connection end with the first end, which connect with the controller respectively with second connection end, and the main part of the elasticity is vacantly arranged.The controller includes a driving unit and a form adjusts unit, and the driving unit is the powered rotation of the elastic rod, and the position regulating unit controls the spatial shape of the elastic rod.The elastic rod rotates under the driving of the controller by rotation axis of center line, elastic rod camber described in rotary course.

Description

A carbon nanotube pulling device

technical field

The invention relates to a carbon nanotube pulling device.

Background technique

Carbon nanotubes have excellent mechanical, thermal and electrical properties, and can be used to fabricate field effect transistors, atomic force microscope tips, field emission electron guns, nano-templates and so on. However, at present, carbon nanotubes are basically applied at the microscopic scale, which is difficult to operate. Therefore, the assembly of carbon nanotubes into macroscale structures is of great significance for the macroscopic application of carbon nanotubes.

Macroscopic carbon nanotube structures include carbon nanotube films, carbon nanotube filaments, and the like. The width of the carbon nanotube film obtained by using the existing device for preparing carbon nanotube film is fixed, which is approximately equal to the initial contact width between the pulling device and the carbon nanotube array, and the initial contact width cannot be infinitely increased. The initial contact width is limited by the size of the carbon nanotube array. The preparation process of carbon nanotube filaments needs to add a step of "wetting the prepared carbon nanotube film in an organic solution" on the basis of the above-mentioned preparation of carbon nanotube film, which further increases the complexity of the operation. It can be seen that the operation of the existing carbon nanotube structure preparation device is relatively complicated and the function is single, which is not conducive to the large-scale production and application of the carbon nanotube structure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of this, it is indeed necessary to provide an apparatus for preparing carbon nanotube structures, which is easy to operate and can prepare carbon nanotube structures of various specifications.

A carbon nanotube pulling device is used to obtain a carbon nanotube structure from a carbon nanotube array, the carbon nanotube pulling device comprises: an elastic rod and a controller; the elastic rod is a rod-shaped structure, There is a first connection end and a second connection end opposite to the first end, the first connection end and the second connection end are respectively connected with the controller, and the elastic main body part is suspended; the control The device includes a drive unit and a shape adjustment unit, the drive unit provides power for the rotation of the elastic rod, and the position adjustment unit controls the spatial shape of the elastic rod; the elastic rod is driven by the controller The lower part rotates with its own center line as the rotation axis, and the elastic rod forms an arc shape during the rotation.

Compared with the prior art, the carbon nanotube pulling device provided by the present invention can be used to prepare both carbon nanotube films and carbon nanotube filaments, and the width of the carbon nanotube structure can be adjusted at any time during the preparation process. Carbon nanotube structures of any width can be obtained, and the operation is simple.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a carbon nanotube pulling device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a carbon nanotube pulling device provided by the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a method for preparing a carbon nanotube film according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a method for preparing a carbon nanotube film according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a method for preparing a carbon nanotube rope according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Description of main component symbols

Carbon nanotube pulling device 100 carbon nanotube array 10 base 20 carbon nanotube film 30 carbon nanotube filament 31 elastic rod 110 first connection 111 second connection 112 center line 113 controller 120 Connecting rod 121 first motor 123 second motor 124 first limit ring 125 second limit ring 126 Controller body 127

The following specific embodiments will further illustrate the present invention in conjunction with the above drawings.

Detailed ways

The carbon nanotube pulling device provided by the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 1, a first embodiment of the present invention provides a carbon nanotube pulling device 100 for obtaining a carbon nanotube structure from a carbon nanotube array 10. The carbon nanotube structure includes a carbon nanotube film, a carbon nanotube Nanotube ropes, etc. The carbon nanotube pulling device 100 includes: an elastic rod 110 and a controller 120 . The elastic rod 110 has a first connection end 111 and a second connection end 112 opposite to the first connection end 111 . The first connection end 111 and the second connection end 112 are connected to the controller 120 . The main body of the elastic 110 is suspended in the air. The elastic rod 110 is driven by the controller 120 to rotate with its own center line 113 as the rotation axis.

The controller 120 includes a drive unit and a shape adjustment unit, the drive unit provides power for the rotation of the elastic rod 110 , and the shape adjustment unit controls the spatial shape of the elastic rod 110 . Referring to FIG. 2 , the controller 120 in this embodiment includes: a first motor 123 , a second motor 124 , a first limit ring 125 , a second limit ring 126 , a connecting rod 121 and a controller body 127 . The first motor 123 , the second motor 124 , the first limit ring 125 , and the second limit ring 126 are respectively connected to the controller body 127 through a connecting rod 121 . The controller body 127 is provided with a shape adjustment unit, which adjusts the position of the first motor 123, the second motor 124, the first limit ring 125, and the second limit ring 126 in three-dimensional space by controlling the position of the first motor 123, the second motor 124, the first limit ring 125, and the second limit ring 126. The spatial form of the elastic rod 110 .

The first motor 123 is connected to the first connection end 111 , and the second motor 124 is connected to the second connection end 112 . The rotation speed and direction of the elastic rod 110 are controlled by the operation speed and direction of the first motor 123 and the second motor 124 . The rotation speed and direction of the first motor 123 and the second motor 124 are the same, and the rotation speed may be tens to hundreds of revolutions per minute. In this embodiment, two motors are used to drive the elastic rod 110. It can be understood that the specific number and arrangement of the motors are not limited to the methods provided in the embodiment, and it is only necessary to ensure that the elastic rod 110 can be driven to rotate around its central axis That's it. For example, only one motor may be provided, and the motor drives one of the first connection end 111 or the second connection end 112 to rotate, and the other rotates accordingly.

The first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring 126 are sleeved on the surface of the elastic rod 110 to limit the spatial position of the elastic rod 110 during rotation. The first limiting ring 125 is disposed close to the inner side of the first connecting end 111 , and the second limiting ring 126 is disposed close to the inner side of the second connecting end 112 . Preferably, the first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring 126 are symmetrically arranged. There is a certain gap between the first limit ring 125 , the second limit ring 126 and the elastic rod 110 , so that the elastic rod 110 can be positioned relative to the first limit ring 125 and the second limit ring 110 . Ring 126 is free to rotate. Preferably, the first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring 126 are annular structures, and the inner diameter d1 is equal to and slightly larger than the diameter d2 of the elastic rod 110 . The spatial positions of the first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring 126 are controlled by the shape adjustment unit inside the controller body 127 . When the spatial positions of the first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring 126 are fixed , the spatial position of the elastic rod 110 during the rotation process can remain basically unchanged. In this embodiment, the inner diameters of the first limiting ring 125 and the second limiting ring are equal, and 0.5 mm < d1-d2 < 5 mm; the distance between the first limiting ring 125 and the first connecting end 111 is The distance is L1, the distance between the second limiting ring 126 and the second connecting end 112 is L2, and 10 mm < L1 = L2 <50 mm. It should be noted that the number and position of the limit ring can be adjusted based on the actual situation, and the limit ring is not a necessary component. Bit loops can also implement the present invention.

The elastic rod 110 has good elasticity and can change its shape under the action of external force, for example, it can be bent from a straight rod to an arc rod with variable curvature. The arc can be a circular arc, an elliptical arc or other irregular arcs. The elastic rod 110 can be bent in a direction away from the carbon nanotube array 10 or in a direction close to the carbon nanotube array 10 . The shape of the elastic rod 110 is rod-like. The material of the elastic rod 110 is not limited, as long as it can bend under the action of external force and rotate with its own center line as the rotation axis. The flexural modulus of the elastic rod 110 may be 1-20 Mpa. The material of the elastic rod 110 may be plastic, resin, rubber and other materials with good elasticity. Silicone rubber is used in this embodiment. The cross-sectional shape of the elastic rod 110 is not limited, and can be various closed figures surrounded by straight lines or curves, preferably a circle. In this embodiment, the elastic rod 110 is a silicone rod, and the cross-sections of the silicone rods at each position are circles with equal diameters. The diameter of the silicone rod is d2, and 1mm<d2<50mm. The silicone rod is a straight rod in a free state, and can be bent into an arc under the action of an external force, and the arc changes with the change of the external force.

When the carbon nanotube pulling device 100 is in use, the first connection end 111 and the second connection end 112 are respectively driven by the first motor 123 and the second motor 124 to rotate at the same speed, so that the The elastic rod 110 rotates on its own center line 113 as the rotation axis. The spatial shape of the elastic rod 110 is adjusted by controlling the distance between the first motor 123 and the second motor 124 through the controller 120 . The rotation speed of the elastic rod 110 is not limited, it only needs to ensure that the carbon nanotubes can be continuously and uniformly pulled out of the carbon nanotube array 10 during the pulling process. Preferably, the elastic rod 110 keeps rotating at a constant speed, and the linear speed of the rotation is about 0.01 cm/s˜100 cm/s. When the elastic rod 110 is bent in a direction away from the carbon nanotube array 10 , a carbon nanotube film with a gradually increasing width can be obtained; when the elastic rod 110 is bent in a direction close to the carbon nanotube array 10 When bending, a carbon nanotube film with a gradually decreasing width can be obtained, and a carbon nanotube rope can be obtained by gradually shrinking the carbon nanotube film with a gradually decreasing width. The bending direction and the bending arc of the elastic rod 110 can be freely adjusted during the rotation.

The carbon nanotube pulling device 100 provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is used for pulling various carbon nanotube structures from the carbon nanotube array 10, and the width of the carbon nanotube structure can be adjusted arbitrarily during the pulling process , is no longer limited by the size of the carbon nanotube array 10 .

Referring to FIG. 3, the second embodiment of the present invention provides a preparation method for preparing a carbon nanotube film, including the following steps:

S11, providing a carbon nanotube array 10 formed on a substrate 20, the carbon nanotube array 10 including a plurality of carbon nanotubes substantially perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 20;

S12, selecting a plurality of carbon nanotubes from the carbon nanotube array 10, and applying a pulling force to the plurality of carbon nanotubes, thereby forming a carbon nanotube film 30;

S13, providing an elastic rod 110, the elastic rod is parallel to the surface of the base, and the starting end of the carbon nanotube film 30 is fixed on the surface of the elastic rod 110;

S14 , rotate the elastic rod 110 with the center line 113 of the elastic rod 110 as the rotation axis. During the rotation, the elastic rod 110 maintains an arc shape and bends in a direction away from the carbon nanotube array 10 . The width of the contact portion between the tube membrane 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually increases.

In step S11 , the carbon nanotube array 10 includes a plurality of carbon nanotubes substantially perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 20 , and the plurality of carbon nanotubes substantially perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 20 are arranged in an array. The carbon nanotube array 10 is grown on the surface of the substrate 20 by chemical vapor deposition. The carbon nanotubes in the carbon nanotube array 10 are substantially parallel to each other and perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 20 , and adjacent carbon nanotubes are in contact with each other and are combined by van der Waals force. By controlling the growth conditions, the carbon nanotube array 10 basically does not contain impurities, such as amorphous carbon or residual catalyst metal particles. Since there are basically no impurities and the carbon nanotubes are in close contact with each other, there is a large van der Waals force between adjacent carbon nanotubes, which is enough to make adjacent carbon nanotubes (carbon nanotube fragments) pulled out. The carbon nanotubes are connected end-to-end and continuously pulled out by van der Waals force. Such a carbon nanotube array 10 from which the carbon nanotubes can be connected end-to-end is also referred to as a super-aligned carbon nanotube array 10 . The material of the substrate 20 may be P-type silicon, N-type silicon, or silicon oxide, etc., a substrate suitable for growing the super-aligned carbon nanotube array 10 .

In step S12 , a plurality of carbon nanotube segments with a width of d ₁ are first selected from the carbon nanotube array 10 . A tape having a certain width can be used to contact the carbon nanotube array 10 with _a plurality of carbon nanotube segments of a selected width d1, and then stretch the plurality of carbon nanotubes at a certain speed in a direction substantially perpendicular to the growth direction of the carbon nanotube array 10. Tube segments, while the plurality of carbon nanotube segments are gradually separated from the substrate along the stretching direction under the action of tensile force, due to the action of van der Waals force, the selected plurality of carbon nanotube segments are respectively connected end-to-end with other carbon nanotube segments. The ground is pulled out, thereby forming a carbon nanotube film 30 . The carbon nanotube film 30 is formed by a plurality of carbon nanotube bundles that are aligned end to end, and the width is d ₁ . The arrangement direction of the carbon nanotubes in the carbon nanotube film 30 is substantially parallel to the stretching direction of the carbon nanotube film.

In step S13 , the starting end of the carbon nanotube film 30 is fixed at the S point on the surface of the elastic rod 110 , and preferably, the S point is the midpoint of the elastic rod 110 .

In step S14, the elastic rod 110 rotates with its own center line 113 as the rotation axis under the driving of the external force. The external force may be provided by the controller 120 in the first embodiment of the present invention, or may be provided by the operator's hands. The elastic rod 110 maintains an arc shape and bends away from the carbon nanotube array 10 during the rotation. Preferably, the elastic rod 110 and the carbon nanotube film 30 are located on the same plane. The elastic rod rotates at a constant speed, and the linear speed of the rotation can be 0.01 cm/s~100 cm/s. Before the elastic rod 110 starts to rotate, the width of each position of the carbon nanotube film 30 is approximately the same, which is d ₁ . During the rotation of the elastic rod 110 , the width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually increases, from d ₁ to d ₁ ′, the carbon nanotube film 30 and the carbon The width of the contact portion of the nanotube array 10 is basically unchanged and remains as d ₁ .

Referring to FIG. 4 , the carbon nanotube film 30 includes a plurality of carbon nanotube filaments formed by end-to-end carbon nanotubes, and the carbon nanotube filaments are subjected to a force T from the elastic rod 110 during the rotation. ₁ , and the force T ₂ from the carbon nanotube array 10 . A certain angle θ is formed between T ₁ and T ₂ , 0°<θ<180°. The carbon nanotube film 30 gradually expands outward under the action of T ₁ and T ₂ , and the width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually increases. The width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film and the elastic rod can be adjusted by changing the bending degree of the elastic rod or changing the distance between the elastic rod and the carbon nanotube array. When the included angle θ is about 180°, the carbon nanotube film 30 no longer expands outward, the width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the elastic rod remains unchanged, and the carbon nanotube film 30 remains unchanged. The nanotube film 30 is in a stable stretching state. In this state, the elastic rod 110 is a circular arc, and the arc center O is located at the contact position between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the carbon nanotube array 10 .

The second embodiment of the present invention provides a method for preparing a carbon nanotube film. The width of the carbon nanotube film prepared by the method can be adjusted arbitrarily during the drawing process, and the maximum width of the obtained carbon nanotube film is no longer any longer. Limited by the size of the carbon nanotube array.

Referring to FIG. 5, a third embodiment of the present invention provides a method for preparing a carbon nanotube rope, including the following steps:

S21, providing a carbon nanotube array 10 formed on a substrate 20, the carbon nanotube array 10 including a plurality of carbon nanotubes substantially perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 20;

S22, selecting a plurality of carbon nanotubes from the carbon nanotube array 10, and applying a pulling force to the plurality of carbon nanotubes, thereby forming a carbon nanotube film 30;

S23, providing an elastic rod 110, the elastic rod is parallel to the surface of the base, and fixing the starting end of the carbon nanotube film 30 on the surface of the elastic rod 110;

S24 , rotate the elastic rod 110 with the center line 113 of the elastic rod 110 as the rotation axis. During the rotation, the elastic rod 110 maintains an arc shape and bends in a direction close to the carbon nanotube array 10 . The width of the contact portion between the tube membrane 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually decreases.

The main difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that in this embodiment, the bending direction of the elastic rod 110 is close to the carbon nanotube array 10 , while the bending direction of the elastic rod 110 in the first embodiment is far away from all The carbon nanotube array 10 is described.

In step S24, the elastic rod 110 rotates with its own center line 113 as the rotation axis under the driving of the external force. The external force may be provided by the controller 120 in the first embodiment of the present invention, or may be provided by the operator's hands. The elastic rod 110 maintains an arc shape and bends toward the direction close to the carbon nanotube array 10 during the rotation. Preferably, the elastic rod 110 and the carbon nanotube film 30 are located on the same plane. Before the elastic rod 110 starts to rotate, the width of each position of the carbon nanotube film 30 is approximately the same, which is d ₂ . During the rotation of the elastic rod 110 , the width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually decreases from d ₂ to d ₂ ′. The width of the contact portion of the carbon nanotube array 10 is basically unchanged and remains as d ₂ .

The carbon nanotube film 30 includes a plurality of carbon nanotube filaments formed by end-to-end carbon nanotubes. During the rotation, the carbon nanotube wire is subjected to the force T ₃ from the elastic rod 110 and the force T ₄ from the carbon nanotube array 10 . The angle between the above two forces is γ, 0°<γ<180°. The carbon nanotube wire gradually shrinks inward under the action of the above two forces, and the width of the contact portion between the carbon nanotube film 30 and the elastic rod 110 gradually decreases until the carbon nanotube film 30 is in the The contact portion of the elastic rod 110 shrinks into a carbon nanotube rope.

The carbon nanotube rope preparation method provided by the third embodiment of the present invention can shrink carbon nanotube films 30 of any width into carbon nanotube ropes. The thicker the rope, the higher the strength, and the carbon nanotube film 30 does not need to be soaked with an organic solvent during the shrinking process, so the operation is simpler.

In addition, those skilled in the art can also make other changes within the spirit of the present invention. Of course, these changes made according to the spirit of the present invention should all be included within the scope of the claimed protection of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. a kind of carbon nanotube pulling device, for obtaining carbon nano tube structure from carbon nano pipe array, which is characterized in that institute Stating carbon nanotube pulling device includes: an elastic rod and a controller；

The elastic rod is rod-like structure, has one first connecting pin and connect opposite second connection end with the first end, First connecting pin is connect with the controller respectively with second connection end, and the main part of the elasticity is vacantly arranged；

The controller includes a driving unit and a form adjusts unit, and the driving unit is the rotation of the elastic rod Power is provided, the form adjusts the spatial shape that unit controls the elastic rod；

The elastic rod rotates under the driving of the controller by rotation axis of center line, elasticity described in rotary course Bar camber.

2. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the driving unit includes one first electricity Machine, the first motor are connect with first connecting pin, and first connecting pin is driven to rotate, and the second connection end follows rotation Turn.

3. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the driving unit includes one first electricity Machine, one second motor, the first motor are connect with first connecting pin, and second motor and the second connection end connect It connects, the position of the first motor and the second motor adjusts unit control by the form.

4. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the controller includes at least one limit Ring, an at least stop collar are sheathed on the surface of the elastic rod, and the position of an at least stop collar is adjusted by the form Unit control.

5. carbon nanotube pulling device as claimed in claim 4, which is characterized in that an at least stop collar is annulus knot The internal diameter d1 of structure, an at least stop collar is greater than the diameter d2 of the elastic rod, and has 0.5mm < d1-d2 < 5mm.

6. carbon nanotube pulling device as claimed in claim 4, which is characterized in that the controller includes one first stop collar With one second stop collar, first stop collar at a distance from first connecting pin be L1, second stop collar with it is described The distance of second connection end is L2, and has 10mm < L1=L2 < 50mm.

7. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the bending modulus of the elastic rod is 1- 20MPa。

8. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the material of the elastic rod is silicon rubber.

9. carbon nanotube pulling device as described in claim 1, which is characterized in that the section of the elastic rod is circle.

10. carbon nanotube pulling device as claimed in claim 9, which is characterized in that the diameter of the elastic rod is d2, and is had 1mm<d2<50mm。